Connector.



L. C. NICHOLS.

CONNECTOR.

' APPLICATION FILED NOV. 20, 1909.

1,092,589, Patented Apr. 7, 1914.

33 f. AAAAA W 1:31:21; 1 I, I -1112?" 5% W MMMW JB minals of the ronnoctor.

E. @TATE F :ZESQR'SYN, ASSIGNOR, BY MES '13 ASSIGN- IiEE Z-Zlfii, i ALLIS-CHALHERfi 35311333? AGTCRING COMPANY, A. CORPORATION NT QEFICE;

i '0 all whom it may concernit knownihat 1, Lotus C. NIGHGHE; a citizen of the United States, residing at Milwaukee, in the county of Milwaukee and State of Wisconsin, have invented rortam new and useful Improvements in Connectors. of which the following is a full, clear, and exact specification.

This invenlion relates to improvements in connectors or couplers for leotric condur/ tors or rabies, and has for one of its objects the, provision. of a. connector consisting of parts which are inexpensive to manufacture and which can he quickly united and so ofleotively clamped t-ogotl'ier that, the res1st- 12198 of the contractor practically negli gihls.

A furiherobjocil; is the prrwision of a corn nostor having a ronsl urtiou such that there no danger of arzoirlontal separation hotwoen the iierminals of the vonnsoror or ho tween the terminals and the ends of the conductors or cables connected thereto.

My invention may he briefly summarized as consisting in (m'tain novel details of construction and coznhinaii ims and arrange I men's of parts which will he ilosorihod in iho specification and; forth in me appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, wherein I have shown several IIlOdifiUfiUO'IIS of my 1nvention, Figure l is a side elevation of a counooior constructed in aowrdance with one forin of in i'ivonliion, the clampinr nut being shown in s .tion. Fig. 2 a partial sheaf-ion andv part-ml elevation of the some, the .liion being takrn substantially along the line2-2 of Fig. 1, looking in tho rlirortion indicated by the arrows, the earls of the cableor condm'itor hoing attached to the ter- Fig. 3 is an elevation of a modified form of connector, the ter minal members being out of engagement. Fig. 4 is an elevation of a further modification, the ends of tho cable being attached to she sorminals of the CO'OIlOClL-OT.

Referring now lo the figurr of ii 1,

i131. and first io i hirsuqh ills some and TQ shows in ru :3.

Patented Apr. '7, 1914.

members are provided with overlapping or interfittin lon itudinal extensions 14 and 15, the end of 2 1e extension of each terminal member engaging the shoulder 16 formed at the base of the extension of the other terminal member. The: opposing longitudinal faces of the overlapping extensions are not relied on, at least not entirely, for the contact surfaces between which current passes from one terminal to the other, but the major portion of the current, passes through the abutting end portions of the terminals, so that the engaging faces of the shoulders and ends of the extensions form the main contact surfaces. in order that excellent contact may be obtained between these poriions, the terminals are. so formed that when the overlapping extensions are drawn together by means to he roferrsd to later, pressure or a jamming action will be created btween the abutting end faces. For this purpose the en aging faces of the shoulders and the ends the extensions are slightly beveled, and the aarts are preferably so formed that the have ed faces engage one another just before the terminal. members are hrought in exzu-li alinsment, so that when the niomhois are brought in oliuement by the clamping member, considerable pressure will he created hetwoeu thsabutting end fares. In order that there will be no end wise movement between the terminal mem hers while they are being clamped together as described and after living united, and to further incroasv lho contort surfaces hotwecn the momhdrs, l'lnlatter are also provided with interlocking transverse projections or lugs. lo the (confirm-lion shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the .extrnsion H of the terminal momber is provided will; a transversely ex tending projevtion or lug l7 and the extension of the lvrminal inomlior 11 is provided with a transverse slot 1% so arranged and formed as to revolve with a tight fit the projection 17. lreferalfly a portion of the extension 15 of terminal member 11 is cut away forming a recess 19 and a pair of transverse projections 20 and 21 similar to the amination 17.

The terminal members are held or clamped iogeiher lay a damping momhsr, in a not which engages threaded poi-lions and 24 provided on the two uarniinal members. To clamp the memiavrs together the extensions of the two terminal members are placed one upon the other so that they overlap and so that the transverse projections 17 and 20 interlock. As stated before, the beveled faces of the shoulders and extensions engage one another before the two terminal members are brought into alinement, and as the nut is screwed over the overlapping extensions, a jamming action takes place between the engaging beveled faces, with the result that excellent elec tric contact is obtained, and the resistance of the connector is practically the same as that of a continuous member formed of a single piece. It will be seen that this jamming action takes place for the reason that the interlocking transverse projections 17 and 20 prevent an endwise or longitudinal shifting of the terminal members when the nut is screwed to clamping position. In rder that the nut may be caused to pass from the annular threaded shank of one terminal. member, and to engage the threaded extension of the other member, although the two members are not in direct-alinement, the first thread on the free end of the extension toward which the nut is screwed is preferably slightly beveled, with the result that the nut may be readily screwed onto the overlapping portions and the jamming action produced by the nut will force the members together with the beveled faces in firm engagement.

The conductors 13 are preferably soldered and sweated into the o enings of the terminal members, but as a urther means of preventing aceidental separati n between the conductors and the termina members, the free ends of the conductors are brought into the, recess 19 between the projections 20 and L-lof the extension 15 and are bent laterally or at right an les thus roviding at the ends of the con uctors hoo dike portions 25 which aid materially in preventing the eondu tors being so arated from the terminal members. In or er that the conductors may be brought into the recess 19 and then bent laterally, the interlocking projections 17, 20 and 21 are provided centrally thereof with openings or recesses throu h which the conductors pass as shown clear y in Fig. 2.

Tn' Fig. 3, wherein I have shown a modificatlioii'of my qnvention, the terminal members,arii'counterpart or are exact'duplicates and are fi'it a't-Jmngeable. In this figure the terminal, members, which are shown at 26 and 27,'are provided with ove'rlappin longitudinal extensions 23q-the ends of t e 62(- tensions and the shoulders at the bases of the extensions being pre fera-bl beveled, as in the first instance, and beingia dapted to be forced into intimate contactby the clamping nut'29 which engagesrsuitably threaded portions of the two terminal members. In this case each terminal member is provided at its free end with a transverse lu or projection 30 and a short distance from the shoulder at the base of the extension with a transveise ingor projection 31, the latter forming with the shoulder a transverse slot I32 which receives the projection 30 of the other member. Between the projections 30 and 31 of the two terminal members is a recess 33 3 in which the ends of the. conductors may be received and bent as shown in Fig. :3. in this construction, as in the first construction, when one terminal member is placed on the other so that the exten ions overlap and the transversely extending projections interim-k, and when the nut is screwed over the overlapping extensions, the beveled faces are forced firmly in engagement with -one another, the interim-king transverse lugs or projections preventing relative endwise or longitudinal movement of the terminal nu-mbers.

in the modification shown in Fig. l the terminal members Il-l and 215 are provided, :l in the lirst instances. with overlapping extensions Il and iii, the ends of the xtensions and the ends of the shoulders being beveled and being clamped together by a not it. in this ca-c the terminal m mber ll is similar to the terminal member 10 ol' Fig l, being brovidcd at its free end with a l|'illl\'\ ll'. 'L', projection or lug lift The extension ol terminal member 33 is provided with a slot ill which re eives the projection 31) with a tight ill, but in this lnodiliczilion the extension 37 is not provided with a recess iairresponding to the recess if of l igs. l and .2. The ends of the conductors, which are shown at 41 do not, in this case. extend beyond the shoulders at th bases ol the extensions and will he soldered and swcatr-d in the. sockets of the terminal members as first described. The (Mist ruclion ot' the connectors shown in this modification is otherwise the same as the constrm-tioii ot' the connector shown in Figs. 1 and 2 and need not be further described it will be seen that l have provided connectors which answer all the requirements very ellectivolv, but are susceptible of considerable modification in the (lltllllS of construction. I aim, therefore, to cover in my claims all modifications which do not involve a departure from the spirit and scope of my invention.

What i claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. in a cable connector, 11 pair of terminal members having overlapping longitudinal extensions comprising body portions adapted to engage each other and provided with beveled ends, correspondingly beveled shoulders being formed on the members at the basesof the extensions, the line of iaigigement between the body portions being t an angle to the beveled ends, and means st rying the longitudinal extensions and serving to force said beveled surfaces into engagement and to clamp the terminal members together.

3. In a cable connection, a pair of tel. minal members having overlapping extensions and having openings cxlcnding through the same, said extensions having between the adjacent faces thereof a recess, (table terminals extending through the openings in the terminal members and having their free ends projecting into said recess and bent laterally therein.

4. In a cable'connector, a pair of terminal members having overlapping longitudinal extensions provided with body portions adapted to engage each other and beveled ends, beveled shoulders at the bases of said extensions, and securing means serving to force said beveled ends into engagement with said beveled shoulders and to clamp the terminal members together, the line of engagement between said body portions being at an angle to the beveled faces of said, ends and shoulders.

ln a cable connector, a member having overlapping longitudinal extensions provided with beveled ends and having beveled shoulders at the, bases of the extensions, aml threaded securing means adapted to embrace said t.\i(l1 i( !-S and serving to move. said extensions transversely relatively to each other into engagement and to clamp the terminal members together.

G. (fable connector, comprising a pair of terminal members having extensions adapted to overlap when the members are in assembled condition, each member having an opening tberet-hrough adapted to receive a conductor, and said extensions being provided with cut away portions adapted to aline and form a recess when the members are. in assembled condition.

lvlilwaukee, \Vis, Nov. 5, 190$).

In testimony whereof I atlix my signature, in the presence of two witnesses.

LOUIS t. NICHOLS.

\Vitnesses:

,nas. l1. BYRON, Ron. E. STOLL.

pair of terminal. 

